There still exist people who are cassette freaks, who still wish to give concrete integrity to memories or preserve essential data by saving them in cassettes, CDs, DVDs or hard drives. This age has sensationalized the use of android phones, pen drives, laptops where the expanse of storage is unlimited but the extra effort to preserve memories or essential is absent.
So, if you are looking to store your information on DVDs while choosing to store files, you can carefully choose between DVD-R and DVD-RW discs. These discs have the same capacities, easier for you to store the same quantity of data in either of the discs, no matter what you chose. However, the primary difference between DVD-R and DVD-RW is the ability to clean or erase the contents in DVD-RW.
DVD-R vs DVD-RW
The main difference between DVD-R and DVD-RW is that unlike DVD-R, it can be entirely erased and written again and again if required. The data is saved in digital form. This device is known as an optical storage device. We can say DVD-RW is a developed and evolved form of DVD-R.
Comparison Table Between DVD-R and DVD-RW
| Parameters of Comparison | DVD-R | DVD-RW |
|---|---|---|
| Full form | Digital Video Disc Recordable. | Digital Video Disc Re-Writable. |
| Features | Data can be written and stored only once. | Data can be erased and re-written again and again. |
| Usage | Can be used to store data. | Can be used to store data, audio files, videos, voice messages and images. |
| Storage | Can store a large amount of data. | Can store a lesser amount of data compared to DVD-R. |
| Speed | Is slower than DVD-RW. | Faster than DVD-R. |
What is DVD-R?
As mentioned in the introduction itself, the full form of DVD-R is Digital Versatile Disc Recordable. DVD-R is a circular disc of 120 mm in diameter and 1.3 mm in thickness. The disc also contains two poly-carbonate substrates of 0.6 mm each. The disc is easily played by almost all DVD players. It is tested and approved by the DVD Forum founded through merging of various international firms.
The founder of DVD-R was Pioneer. It was founded in 1997. The disc is primarily used to store important data. The only flaw with an otherwise efficient device is that it can be written only once. The data is incorporated with the use of laser on it. The disc is known to store up to 4.7 GB on a single layer and single-sided discs, 8.5 GB can be stored on dual-layer discs and 9.4 GB can be stored on double-sided discs. The storage capacity of DVD-R is greater than DVD-RW. DVD-R is cheaper than DVD-RW in price. Also know that both the discs were released in 1997.
What is DVD-RW?
As mentioned above, the expanded form of DVD-RW is Digital Versatile Disc Re-Writable. As you can already understand by its name, it is a circular disc which is 120 mm in diameter and has a thickness of 1.3 mm. Similar to DVD-R, DVD-RE too has two poly-carbonate substrates of 0.6 mm each. The only remarkable difference separating the discs is that DVD-RW can be erased and written again and again, as many times you wish. The data is stored in the disc in digital form only.
This too is an optical storage device. DVD-RW’s speciality is that any kind of digital data such as audios, video messages, images or any kind of multimedia programs can be saved in it. The disc is extensively used to install various operating systems in computers. DVD-RW has greater speed than the DVD-R and is more flexible when it comes to storage. Another notable feature in DVD-RW is that the data once uploaded in this disc, remains there forever, unless voluntarily erased by user. DVD-RW because of its efficiency and upgraded features is slightly costlier than DVD-R. However, the difference is not much. Both the discs were released in 1997.
Main Differences Between DVD-R and DVD-RW
- Full form of DVD-R is Digital Video Disc Recordable. Whereas full form of DVD-RW is Digital Video Disc Re-Writable.
- Data in DVD-R can be written and stored only once. Whereas, in DVD-RW data can be erased and re-written again and again.
- DVD-RW can be used to store data, audio files, videos, voice messages and images, while DVD-R is limited to only storing valuable data.
- DVD-R can efficiently store a large amount of data, whereas DVD-RW can store a lesser amount of data.
- DVD-R is slower than DVD-RW in speed.
Conclusion
So now after a thorough discussion and weighing of DVD-R and DVD-RW, we do understand the clear difference between the extensively used discs. In case you are looking for a portable device to store your information, you can try out DVDs while choosing to store files. Now you can carefully choose between DVD-R and DVD-RW discs by weighing the qualities of both.
These discs come with the more or less similar features, easier for you to save data in either of the discs, doesn’t matter what you chose. However, the point to be noted, the main difference between DVD-R and DVD-RW is the ability to clean or erase the contents in DVD-RW which isn’t possible with DVD-R. So be careful with your choice depending on the kind of data you want to store.
References
https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1143/JJAP.40.1768/meta